Classroom Assessment: Concepts and Applications Chapter 4: Assessment During Instruction.

Classroom Assessment: Concepts and Applications

Chapter 4: Assessment During

Instruction

In This Chapter We Will Explore:

1. Assessment Tasks During Instruction

2. Validity and Reliability in Instructional Assessment

3. Improving Assessment During Instruction

4. Questioning: Purposes and Strategies

5. Accommodations During Instruction

Discussion…..• You know what “planning”,

“instruction”, and “assessment” mean.Now:• What is “planning assessment”?• What is “instructional assessment”?

Characteristics of Planning and Instructional

AssessmentsPlanning Assessment

1. Occurs before or after instruction

2. Carried out away from class

3. Allows for reflective decisions

4. Focuses on identifying objectives, content, and activities

5. Based on many kinds of formal and informal evidence

Instructional Assessment

1. Occurs during instruction

2. Carried out in front of class

3. Requires instantaneous decisions

4. Focuses on student reactions to content and activities presented

5. Based mainly on informal student cues and responses


Page 100Once instruction begins, teachers

carry on these two tasks:1. Deliver the planned instruction.

2. Constantly assess the progress and success of the instruction in order to

modify it if necessary.

Three Phases of Classroom Assessment

Early Assessment


Summative Assessment

Purpose Provide quick, perceptions & practical knowledge1-gather information2-identify special needs

Constantly assess the progress and success of instruction in order to modify it if necessary

Timing First 2 weeks of school

Evidence-gathering method

*Largely informal observation*school records, test scores, observations, comments from other teacher

Type of evidence gathered

*Cognitive, affective, & psychomotor*behavior, academic work, attitude, relationships

Record keeping

Mental—few written records

Ms. ArcherDuring instruction, teachers collect

assessment data to help monitor the instruction. Watch Ms. Archer and record her actions using the checklist.

http://www.wiki-teacher.com/resources_view_new.php?id=0000000992

.

Watch Ms. Archer and check each time you believe she monitors the following:

___Interest level of class and individual students___Apparent or potential behavior problems___Appropriateness of instruction/activities___Appropriate student to call on next___Adequacy of student’s answer___Pace of instruction___Type of students’ questions___Smoothness of transitions between concepts and activities___Usefulness of examples used to explain concepts___Degree of comprehension of class and individual students___Desirability of starting or ending a particular activity

What is really going on?

1. Observation of students to learn their “normal” behavior.– Know when students exhibit

“out-of-tolerance” behaviors that call for a response from the teacher.

– Adjust instruction accordingly

and make other decisions based on observations.


2. Development of “practical knowledge”-a store of practical knowledge they can apply to their class in order to instruct and manage the classroom

Most of the actions that occur during instruction

are based on the teacher’s practical knowledge of

students.

“John acted out much more than usual today.

He must be upset about something”.


3. Attention to “behavior cues”-students not paying attention-facial expressions-body language-misbehavior


Early Assessment





Timing First 2 weeks of school





Record keeping



Early Assessment





Timing First 2 weeks of school Daily throughout the school year





Record keeping



Early Assessment








Formal observation and student papers for planning;Informal observation for monitoring



Record keeping



Early Assessment











Largely cognitive and affective

Record keeping



Early Assessment











Largely cognitive and affective

Record keeping


Written lesson plans, monitoring information not written down

Validity and Reliability

Are the inferences teachers make based on informal

observations accurate and do they lead to appropriate

decisions about instructional success?

Return to composition book: Validity and Reliability

Two threats to validity are:• teacher objectivity

Teachers may see only what they want to see!• Student learning = student involvement

Threats to reliability:• Lack of multiple observation of multiple students

Improving Instructional Assessment

Page 108

Some basketball players have the shooting “touch”.

Some entertainers have the ability to “read” their

audience.

Successful instructionalassessment depends upon a teacher’s “feel” for theinstructional process.


• #1: Include a broad sample of students when assessing instruction.

• #2: Supplement informal assessment information with more formal information about student learning.

• #3: Use appropriate questioning techniques and strategies to assess student learning.

So, until you have more experience teaching and have developed a “feel” for how things are going in your classroom, what should you keep in mind

during instruction?


1. Include a broad sample of students when assessing instruction.

2.Supplement informal assessment information with formal information about student learning.

3. Use appropriate questioning techniques and strategies to assess student learning.

So, until you have more experienceteaching, what should you try to do while teaching?

1. Include a broad sample of students when assessing instruction.

Teachers evaluate themselves largely in terms of student involvement and attention during instruction. Consequently, they many observe or call on only those higher-achieving students whose behaviors or answers are likely to reinforce their perception of instructional success. Likewise, they may be tempted to focus on lower-level instructional activities that are more easily attained by their students. To avoid these pitfalls, teachers must make an effort to sample a wide range of students in the class.

Do not wait for hands to be raised to determine whether students are following what is going on. Scan the room when a question is posed, surveying the eyes of the students. If they know the answer, they are likely to look you in the eye and raise their hands. If they look away, they may not understand the question or may not know the answer. Rather than calling on students who have hands raised, consider directing a related or clarifying questions to a student whose hand is not raised. Paying attention only to the few students who always know the answer or who are first to raise their hand might cause the teacher to lose touch with the class as a whole.

2. Supplement informal assessment information with more formal information about student learning.

To get a more complete and reliable picture of instructional success, teachers should supplement their informal observations with more formal types of evidence taken from sources such as homework, papers, chapter and lesson review exercises, and worksheets. Each of these is a valuable source of information that can tell the teacher something about how well students have mastered the lesson objectives. These sources of information should be examined closely to help identify misunderstandings and problem areas. If most students’ homework fails to demonstrate mastery of the concept of regrouping when subtracting, for example, the next instructional segment could begin by revisiting this concept and talking through the solutions to the homework problems. If the workbook exercise shows that students cannot differentiate between a fact and an opinion, succeeding instruction should clarify the difference.

3. Use appropriate questioning techniques and strategies to assess student learning.

During instruction, teachers have a limited number of ways to determine whether students are learning the desired objectives. It is impractical; to stop instruction to give a quiz or test every time instructional effectiveness is in doubt. To gather information about student learning during instruction, teachers rely heavily on oral questions. Oral questions are the major instructional assessment techniques for most classroom teachers, with some teachers asking as many as 300 to 400 questions a day (Morgan and Saxton , 1991; Christensen, 1991). Asking questions that require students to process information or think in a different way can facilitate learning by stimulating thinking and inquiry. Well formed questions can also provide valuable assessment information to teachers.

Why/how did Ms. Archer use questioning?

Let’s watch the video again. This time, pay close attention to her questions.

•What kind of questions did she use?

•What were her purposes for questioning the students?

http://www.wiki-teacher.com/resources_view_new.php?id=0000000992

Under item 3: Improving Instructional Assessments

Questioning: Purposes and Strategies:

• To promote attention• To promote deeper processing• To promote learning from peers• To provide reinforcement• To provide pace and control• To provide diagnostic

information

Under item 3: Improving Instructional Assessments

Types of Questions:• Higher-level or Divergent Questions

– Require analytical, critical thinking skills– Require students to apply, analyze, and

synthesize information to solve new problems

– May have several appropriate answers• Lower-level or Convergent Questions

– Require recall or memorization skills– Have a single, correct answer– Generally begin with “who”, “what”,

“when” and “how many”

V

V

Christensen’s typology of questions: shows the breadth of information that can be obtained from varying types of questions.

•Open-ended questions What is your reaction to this poem?•Diagnostic questions What is the nature of the problem in this short

story?•Information questions What was the last state to be admitted to the

US? •Challenge questions What evidence is there to support your

conclusion?•Action questions How can we go about solving the problem of

high school drop-outs?•Sequence questions Given limited resources, what are the two

most important steps to take?•Prediction questions What do you think would happen if the

government shut down for three months?•Extension questions What are the implications of your conclusion

that grades should be abolished in schools?•Generalization questions Based on your study of classroom

assessment, how would you sum up the general concept of validity?

Bloom’s TaxonomyPage 113

• Knowledge• Comprehension• Application• Analysis• Synthesis• Evaluation

Lower-level or Convergent Questions

Higher-level or Divergent Questions;

10-20% of teacher’s questions!

It is best to focus generally on a range of questions that stimulate both memory and reflection.

V

V

Example of Questions For the Levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy

Page 113

• Knowledge– remembering

• Comprehension– understanding

• Application– using information to solve new problems

• Analysis– reasoning, breaking apart

• Synthesis– constructing, integrating

• Evaluation– judging

What is the definition of a noun?

knowledge

Tell the story in your own words.

Comprehension

Compare the facts and opinions stated

here.Analysis

What the most important moment in the story? Why?

Evaluation

How could the Pythagorean

theorem be used to measure the height

of a tree?Application

Emphasis on Lower-Level Questions

Page 113WHY?• Memory-focused objectives occur frequently in the lesson plans• Easiest for students to answer• Teachers are more likely to know the answers to lower-level questions

• Lower-level questions are easier to create than higher level

• Lower-level questions take less thought and time to answer, which preserves a fast pace of instruction

Training Students to Self-assessPage 114

• Student Involved Assessment–Watch the video and

list benefits of student involved assessment.

Student Involved Assessment

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VXCE3BnMTsc

Questioning Strategies Turn to textbook, Page 115

1. Ask questions that relate to the objectives.2. Avoid global, overly general questions.3. Involve the entire class in the process.4. Evenly distribute questions to all students.5. Allow sufficient “wait time” after asking a question.6. State questions clearly & directly7. Probe student responses with follow-up questions.8. Encourage and respect all students.9. Allow shy students to answer in private.10.Be a good listener and responder.11.Avoid “yes” and “no” questions.12.Avoid asking students the same types of questions. Ask for

facts, judgments, opinions, analysis, etc.

Here are a few things to consider so as to avoid some of the common pitfalls associated with using questioning improperly.

• start questioning with friendly toned, easily answered questions, and remember that questions can be used as aggressive and intimidating verbal tools

• plan some of the questions ahead of time. • in addition to planning questions ahead of time, think about and anticipate

possible answers and direction of discussions, so you will be prepared for them. You can also plan follow-up questions for common answers to your initial questions.

• have a clear purpose and direction for your questions. Remember you are not using them to have a chat, but to achieve specific instructional objectives.

• get a sense of partnership and mutual respect, and remember that questions can also be used as putdowns.

• use more open ended types of questions and match question type to purpose. • do not use or allow others to use questions that are too personal or may be

distracting from the purpose of the instructional interaction. • do not use questions to punish, and do not ask questions to people you feel

cannot answer • allow people time to think before answering. The most common and biggest

error teachers and instructors make is to jump in too fast if they do not get an immediate response to a question. Wait them out even if the silence feels uncomfortable to you.

• only answer questions yourself as a last resort

http://www.thetrainingworld.com/faq/questtips.htm

Common Disabilities & Accommodations

Page 116

An important aspect of planning

and delivering instruction is

accommodating student needs and

disabilities.

Hearing Impaired Students

• Use written rather than oral directions.

• Speak slowly and distinctly.• Use sign language.

Vision- Impaired Students

• Use large print.• Provide recorded materials.• Let other students read aloud.• Seat the students near the

activity, materials, or blackboard.

Students with Poor Comprehension

• State directions orally & in writing.

• Increase available time for tasks.• Sequence directions.• Shorten directions.

Lack of Attention

• Repeat major points.• Change the tone of voice.• Call the student’s name before

questioning.• Ask frequent questions.• Have the student write down the

directions.

Disrespectful Students

• Inform disrespectful students that such behavior is not acceptable.

• Make clear consequences.• Try to determine the basis for

the disrespect.• Set up a conference.• Model respect to students.

Argumentative Students

• Do not confront the student in a group situation.

• Evaluate the situation that led to the confrontation.

• Allow the student to tell his or her point of view.

• Do not make idle threats.

Chapter 4 Review Questions: Name_____________________

1. How is assessment for planning instruction different from assessment during instruction?

2. What are a teacher’s main assessment tasks during instruction?

3. How does the concept of “level of tolerance” apply to instructional assessment?

4. What are the main kinds of evidence teachers collect to assess instruction?

What are the problems with these kinds of evidence?

5. What are 3 ways to improve assessment during instruction?

6. What are the validity and reliability issues in assessing during instruction?

7. What are the purposes of oral questioning?

8. What strategies of oral questioning can a teacher use to make assessment during instruction more valid and reliable?

9. What accommodations can be made for students with disabilities during instruction?

Classroom Assessment: Concepts and Applications Chapter 4: Assessment During Instruction.

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